Dead seal found at Ocean Shores killed by 18-foot great white shark, state says

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This female seal was found on the beach at Ocean Shores last Thursday. Her bottom half (not shown) had been bitten off by a great white shark, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said. (Photo: DFW)

Dead seal found at Ocean Shores killed by 18-foot great white shark, state says

This female seal was found on the beach at Ocean Shores last Thursday. Her bottom half (not shown) had been bitten off by a great white shark, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said. (Photo: DFW)

OCEAN SHORES, Wash. — An 18-foot great white shark killed a seal whose remains were found on the beach at Ocean Shores last week, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife said Tuesday.

The DFW said it is warning local authorities, state parks and dive shops in the area that a great white shark is likely present in the Ocean Shores area. The Ocean Shores Police Department said, however, that they are not posting signs to keep people out of the water.

A beach walker found the dead female seal on the beach last Thursday. It had been bitten in half.

“It was a clean bite right below the rib cage,” DFW spokesman Craig Bartlett said. “Other than half the body missing, the seal was in good shape.

“After a necropsy, they determined the bite was from an 18-foot great white shark.”

He added that the seal had a belly full of smelt, indicating she was killed close to shore, he added.

Bartlett said that with the warm current near the shoreline, it’s the area where seals are feeding on smelt.

The Ocean Shores Police Department said Tuesday afternoon that they are not posting signs to keep people out of the water.

Miranda Phillips

Well this is just terrible news, although a nice warning’ and I guess it must be really safe now to swim since the police department refuses to inform people what’s lurking close to shore looking for food, an to stay out of the water. Sounds to me like they really care about the community and the people’s safety! That should matter most, put out nets of some sort, in certain areas and we wouldn’t have to worry about these scary situations so much….